ALBANY — On the sidelines for a spell during Giants practice yesterday, Hakeem Nicks pretended to drop back as if he were a quarterback.

Nicks is not the Giants’ quarterback, but since the injured wideout can’t practice right now, that’s at least a peek into how he spends his down time while his teammates are on the field. Nicks, recovering from his broken right foot, is part of the inaction during training camp, his jersey on but his helmet off, forced to watch practice.

Nicks, though, delivered promising news yesterday on the injury front, saying it’s reasonable to expect him back in mid-August. So with there being only two days remaining in July, figure Nicks — injured during organized team activities in May — to be out maybe two more weeks or so.

“That sounds about right,” Nicks said of a mid-August time frame. “No setbacks. Everything’s going the way we planned.”

There’s little argument Nicks’ health is paramount for the Giants, considering three major points — the fourth-year man is the team’s best wideout, the Giants pass a lot and the receiving corps lost both Mario Manningham and Jake Ballard from last year’s team.

How valuable is the 24-year-old Nicks? During the Giants’ four-game Super Bowl run, he was the team’s leader in receptions (28), receiving yards (444) and touchdowns (four).

Indeed, after Eli Manning, Nicks was almost certainly the Giants’ top postseason player.

“Nothing less,” Nicks said when asked what he expects from himself this season. “To pick up where I left off at.”

He has begun running again and has been pain-free. He hasn’t begun cutting yet, but expects to be cleared to do that soon.

“You could say [I’m] antsy,” Nicks said of being sidelined. “I’m ready to get back at it. I feel like I need to be out there with the guys. But just following the instructions of the team doctors and the team trainers right now.”

During practice so far, the Giants have only had one of their top four receivers from last year — Victor Cruz — on the field. Manningham and Ballard are in San Francisco and New England, respectively. Nicks should be back in a couple of weeks, though, poised to pick up where he left off.